Overcoming Transmission Issues

Transmission issues include anything that interferes with the sending or receiving of messages. The primary causes of transmission problems include:

The inability to make a connection.

Low bandwidth.

Interference.

Making a Connection

In many situations, the inability to make a connection is due to things outside of our control, such as:

Broken lines.

Weather.

Server issues.

These issues require contact with the providers and patience. If service will not be restored soon, reschedule the communications or select an alternative method.

There are things within our control that can be addressed immediately. They include:

An incorrect email address.

A wrong phone number.

A typo in the website URL.

A wrong login or password.

Double check all entered data and make certain it is correct. Then try connecting or resending again.

Some connection issues are caused by cached web pages. This problem can be rectified by going to the browser's tool menu and emptying the cache.

When a connection problem is with an email, you will get a "mail daemon," which is a return message letting you know that the email did not go through. Read the daemon carefully, because it will tell you why the message failed. The most common reasons include:

The email address does not have a mailbox. (The email address is probably typed incorrectly.)

The mailbox is full. (The other person needs to clean out old emails.)

The message is too large. In this situation you may:

Split the images between multiple emails.

Reduce the size of the attachments.

Use an alternative method for delivering documents, such as a web-based file sharing program.

Bandwidth and Interference Issues

Once a connection has been made, you may experience issues with the quality of the connection. The problem may be with a local machine or device, with the server, or with the network.

Bandwidth issues or interference are recognized by:

Silence.

Twanging sounds.

Static.

Choppy audio or video.

Frozen presentations.

Dropped signals.

When these things occur:

Close all other applications.

Lower the video quality to reduce drain on resources.

Use audio only and shut down video.

Move to another location with a stronger signals.

Restart the meeting or conversation and reconnect.

If the issue continues and you are unable to resolve the problem, you may choose to postpone the meeting or conversation. Another option might be to switch to an alternative communication method.

Some issues may be caused by the web browser or the browser's plugins. Plug-ins are add-on applications that provide greater functionality. When experiencing communication issues while using web-based applications: